the glass factory.           
                                        
                                        
                                      
                                  
                                  
                                          
 several  centuries  after  it  had  last 
 belonged  to us, we went on an outing to 
 the glass factory that  bore our  family 
 name. it had changed  owners many  times 
 since  our  ancestors  death,  and  then 
 stood   abandoned  for   a  long  while. 
 finally,  the  natural  end  station for 
 the  buildings that  survive: a  museum, 
 and a gift shop.                         
                                          
 there's a  long  time  since  my  family 
 made  anything.  by  many, we  would  be 
 considered poor.                         
                                          
 there  are two main  factory  buildings, 
 domed things of  several floors, made in 
 yellow brick. large  but narrow windows, 
 reminescent     of    some    cathedral. 
 custom-made  glass, of course, large and 
 leaded, and ashen.  a bit too dark to be 
 practical.   on  the  eastern  building, 
 some are shattered.                      
                                          
 the other one  is publicly open. there's 
 a  museum, with wax figures of  my great 
 great great grandfather,  or  something. 
 various tools (or replicas) laid out  on 
 tables, with explaining  texts. a lot of 
 glass      of     varying     thickness. 
                                          
                                        
                                      
                          
                                      
                                        
                                          
 i quickly sneak out, and climb  into the 
 other   building.   the    contrast   is 
 overwhelming.   it   must   have   stood 
 derelict  for  a  long   time,   windows 
 broken,  metallic  trash  and  pools  of 
 dark  glass  all  over  the   floor.  no 
 electric lights,  but i  can see  by the 
 light that  shines in  wherever the dark 
 windows     are    missing    a    pane. 
                                          
 however, the greatest difference  is the 
 higher  floors: this building  has none. 
 it is  one massive hall, stretching away 
 infinitely above me.  somewhere up there 
 is some  great  iron  latticework,  from 
 where chains  are suspended,  and  parts 
 of  machinery  has  been  falling  down. 
                                          
 there  is,  in the  middle of the  great 
 hall,  a  thin  spiral  staircase   that 
 leads up there. i sneak over  there, and 
 take a few reluctant  steps. after  just 
 a  revolution,  i  notice that  for each 
 step  the building starts  to  glow, the 
 bricks  turning a  dark  red,  and  then 
 orange,  all the  piled  up debree being 
 lit from behind.                         
                                          
 i stop  ready to  run down and  out, but 
 there's  someone  else  on the staircase 
 with   me  now,   pressed  close.   he's 
 looking  like  me,  short  hair and thin 
 arms, but  with ears  from  some animal, 
 and more disturbingly,  completely  made 
 of dark liquid glass.                    
                                          
                                        
                                      
                          
                                      
                                        
                                          
 my  fear  holds  me  in  place  while he 
 starts  operating levers and  dials  set 
 in the center of the  staircase. slowly, 
 it  starts  spinning, circling  upwards. 
 it's   an  elevator!  i  start   to  run 
 downwards,   but  now  the  liquid   boy 
 creature  grabs  hold of  me.  i try  to 
 shake him off, but he's too  strong, and 
 pulls   me    back    up   beside   him. 
                                          
 this time,  i  turn  angry instead. what 
 the  hell? who  is this guy, acting like 
 this? i reach out  my free arm and  slam 
 a  random  lever.  some  metal   bar  is 
 suddenly released  between  us,  hitting 
 him on the arm,  forcing  my release.  i 
 shove  him off of  me, and he falls into 
 the    levers,    messing    them    up. 
 immediately,  a   thin  rusty  chainmail 
 curtain is  dropped around  me.  but the 
 elevator  also speeds up  significantly. 
                                          
 the  walls  are   flaring  now,  yellow, 
 white, almost blue. i close  my eyes and 
 curl  into a ball.  but then,  the glass 
 boy  screams,  a   piercing  sound  that 
 forces my eyes back  open. i watch as he 
 becomes  too  liquid,  his body  pooling 
 down in  his now massive tail,  and  the 
 tip of it suddenly breaks of in a  glass 
 drop  that  falls  toward  the   factory 
 floor.                                   
                                          
 he's crawling on the  stairs, unable  to 
 keep his  body upright. can't reach  the 
 levers,  claws  at  my  chainmail  cage, 
 while his  body  is  turning  into  dark 
 pearls. finally,  he's lost  too much of 
 himself  and the  scream  is  cut short. 
 the   last    of    him   rains    down. 
                                          
 i  still  can't  reach  the levers  from 
 within my  cage. looking up,  i  try  to 
 make  out the ceiling,  but  it's  all a 
 whirling sea of  colours. below me glows 
 the hellfire of the  factory  walls, but 
 very faint. i  sit  down, curl  back up, 
 become still.                            
                                          
                                        
                                      
                          
                                      
                                        
                                          
 a large  clunk shakes  my  entire  body, 
 and snaps  me  back  into  reality.  i'm 
 back  at  the  factory  floor,  but  the 
 stairs   are   still   moving  slightly, 
 clicking in place, carrying  me the last 
 few  centimeters.  i  came  from  below, 
 somehow.  the  chainmail  is  retracted, 
 and  i  slowly   dismount  the   stairs. 
                                          
 shaking and crying,  i make my  way over 
 the factory  floor,  wading through dark 
 glass marbles. a quick  glance down, and 
 i  see there's  something  faint  inside 
 them.   embryos?    are   these    eggs? 
                                          
 i   shudder,   and   climb   back   out.